The present application generally relates to the field of enclosures for housing printed circuit boards or other types of electronic components, and more specifically relates to the field of rack-mount enclosures for mounting such devices.
Equipment racks are utilized to house a variety of different types of electronic equipment. For instance, a rack-mount chassis installed within a rack may be utilized to hold server computers, mass storage devices, telecommunications equipment, and a wide variety of other types of electronic equipment. The Electronic Industry Association""s (xe2x80x9cEIAxe2x80x9d) standard EIA-310D sets forth the standard dimensions and specifications for cabinets, racks panels, and associated equipment utilized in standard-sized racks.
In order to mount many different types of electronic components within a rack-mount chassis, manufacturers typically make specific chassis for specific applications. Making many different kinds of rack-mount chassis, however, can be very expensive because a different physical configuration must be utilized for each different type of electronic component to be mounted. This can lead to decreased efficiency in manufacturing and a corresponding increase in cost of the rack-mount chassis. Moreover, a number of difficulties exist that make it very difficult to create a single rack-mount chassis that can be utilized to mount many different types of electronic components.
One difficulty in creating a single rack-mount chassis that can be utilized to mount many different types of electronic components results from the fact that different types of mounting hardware need to be utilized to mount different types of electronic components. In certain circumstances, the mounting hardware utilized to mount one type of electronic component may conflict with the mounting requirements of another type of electronic component. For instance, in order to mount printed circuit boards within a standard rack-mount chassis, standoffs may be welded into the bottom of the rack. Screws may then be utilized to mount the printed circuit board to the standoffs.
The use of standoffs, however, may be problematic because some types of printed circuit boards have different height requirements than other types. Therefore, a standoff of a certain height suitable for one type of board may not be utilized with certain other types of printed circuit boards. Moreover, the mounting locations for some types of printed circuit boards conflict with the mounting locations of other types. If standoffs are physically attached to the bottom panel of the rack-mount chassis, the standoffs for one type of printed circuit board may interfere with the mounting of another type of printed circuit board.
Another difficulty in creating a standard rack-mount chassis that can accommodate a wide variety of electronic component types arises when extruded tap holes are created in a bottom panel of the rack-mount chassis to mount the electronic components. Extruded tap holes are created by drilling a hole in the bottom panel of the rack-mount chassis and then threading the hole for use with a screw. While these types of holes are inexpensive to create, their use does result in the inability to mount certain types of equipment within a rack-mount chassis. Because extruded tap holes are created by drilling through a bottom portion of the rack-mount chassis, the creation of these holes creates an uneven surface where the hole has been drilled. This leaves the bottom of the chassis rough and prohibits certain types of equipment from being smoothly slid into and out of the rack-mount chassis. Therefore, the use of extruded tap holes restricts the types of electronic component types that may be mounted within a rack-mount chassis.
Therefore, in light of the above, there is a need for an apparatus for receiving and mounting a printed circuit board or other type of electronic component that can receive and mount a variety of circuit board and component types without modification.
Embodiments of the present invention solve the above-described problems by providing an apparatus for mounting a printed circuit board or other type of electronic component in a manner that allows a wide variety of printed circuit board types or electronic component types to be utilized. Generally described, embodiments of the present invention provide a rack-mount apparatus for mounting electronic components. According to one actual embodiment of the present invention, the apparatus comprises a five-sided enclosure for mounting an electronic component, including a bottom panel having countersunk holes for mounting the electronic component. According to this embodiment of the invention, mounting hardware is also provided for attaching the electronic component to the bottom panel of the rack-mount chassis through the countersunk holes. Through the use of countersunk holes, a top surface and a bottom surface of the bottom panel remain smooth and therefore allow a variety of different types of electronic components to be mounted.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, the countersunk holes in the bottom panel are arranged according to two or more mounting patterns. The mounting patterns may correspond to standard mounting patterns for mounting different types of standard printed circuit boards or other types of electronic components. In this embodiment, the printed circuit board or other type of electronic component to be mounted will include mounting locations also defined by the mounting pattern that correspond to the countersunk holes.
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, mounting hardware is provided for affixing the printed circuit board or other type of electronic component to the bottom panel of the rack-mount chassis. According to this embodiment of the present invention, the mounting hardware may comprise a countersunk screw or other type of mounting device that allows the printed circuit board or other type of electronic component to be mounted to the bottom panel of the rack-mount enclosure without causing any protrusion from the bottom surface of the bottom panel. Additionally, the mounting hardware may also include a spacer for creating a gap between the bottom panel of the rack mount enclosure and the printed circuit board or other type of electronic component to be mounted. The gap width may be defined according to the type of electronic component. For instance, the mounting requirements for a particular type of printed circuit may indicate that the printed circuit board should be mounted a certain height off the bottom of the rack-mount enclosure. The spacer may be interposed between the printed circuit board or other type of electronic component to be mounted and the bottom panel of the rack-mount chassis to create the pre-defined gap. Additionally, a retainer may be utilized above the printed circuit board or other type of component to be mounted to affix the printed circuit board to the bottom panel of the rack-mount chassis.
Other aspects of the invention in its various embodiments will become apparent from the detailed description that follows.